This gorgeous pair of kinetic, gold fill, seed pearl and black enamel tracery earrings from the Victorian era feature sinuous lines, organic motifs, and romance. Their feminine design give these earrings a seductive look, and the superb tracery work adds a heightened sense of dimensionality with notable texture. Tracery work, also known as taille d'epargné, is an engraving of lines to form ornate designs that are later filled with black enamel. At times, the engravings have subtle depth variations. This type of tracery work was very popular in the 1850's and was most often seen on mourning jewelry. In French, taille d'epargné translates literally into "saving cut."
The curling and rounded forms against the hard edges are reminiscent of architectural revival jewelry. The earrings showcase some fantastic details, such as black enamel work and bright-cut work. These kinetic earrings have lovely swing to them, and reveal the fine craftsmanship of the Victorian era.
The backs of the earrings have been personalized with the initials “E.A.P.” in scrolling, flowery cursive. Based on other pieces in our collection, we know the original owner’s name was Emma.
Each earrings is approximately 1 1/4 inches by 1/2 inch wide. Each earring contains a tiny detail seed pearl that is approximately 1mm. Together, the two earrings weigh 5 grams.
The earrings themselves are gold fill, while the post backs are 14k gold.
